It is official preseason is officially underway for me and I am determined that I am going to be going into the new season in September in the best shape possible. After a season of injury last season I am not going to be making the same mistakes and I am going to be ensuring that I go into the season with a lower weight, more strength and even better overall fitness however, it is going to take a lot of hard work between now and the 1st of September to get to this point and that is why I am setting myself some goals to achieve before then to keep me on track for getting in the best shape. So here are a break down on the goals I am setting myself for the next few months... 

Get as close to 95 kg as possible

If I hit 95 kg I will be at my lowest weight in quite a while which would be a huge achievement but as I am sitting at around the 108 kg mark at the moment this is going to require a big push with a loss of 1.2kg per week being need to hit the goal. Even if I get to 98kg I will be at a much lower weight than when I started last season which will be a huge bonus. I am just hoping that by dropping weight my body won't be put under as much stress so I hopefully get less injuries over the course of the season. 

Play in as many friendlies as possible

Friendlies are a good way to get in shape for the season as you are gaining valuable game time in each one and there is no better way of getting season ready than actually playing games. The more game time I get under my belt in preseason should mean I am building up my fitness ready for the season to begin and also should mean I am working on technical ability in the friendlies too. I want to make sure I am playing in as many as possible and only missing ones due to being away, no excuses now it is time to show up.

Attend as many football training sessions as possible

Just like with the friendlies attending training is going to help me get in much better shape so rather than going and watching the team I support in friendlies the plan is to go to my own football training and smash the hours session. This will help me improve all round and means I am getting an extra hours workout in each week which should help with getting close to the weight goal too. 

Build the strength in my knee

My knee got worse last season and I actually had 3 months out due to injuring it pretty badly and those 3 months were awful not being able to play so I want to limit the chances of this happening again. The weight loss will definitely help me with my knee not being under so much pressure however, I want to make sure I am also using the off season to do some strengthening exercises on my knee whilst in the gym so I am going into the new season in the best position possible with my knee.

Improve my overall fitness

My current fitness levels might as well not exist and that is something that drives me insane as I know I have the potential to really improve my fitness levels if I just put the work in. So that is my plan this off season, get plenty of cardio sessions in and really make a difference in my fitness and stamina so that I get more minutes under my belt in the season and also can impact the team in a much better way than I have been. 

Work on my ball control

I feel like a lot of my ball game needs work after so long out injured last season as I feel a bit rusty on the pitch. The plan is to have a few solo sessions in the garden or with Liam just working on my ball control like dribbling, first touch and passing & receiving. Just 30 minutes a few times a week would massively help me with this so I just need to get out and do it.

Work on my finishing

Whilst I am working on my ball control I also want to work on my finishing as the potential is there as I scored 3 goals last season but I know with a bit of work on technique, power and accuracy I could potentially score a few more goals and help the team out a bit more. Just 30 minutes a few times a week would also massively improve this and also would help with strengthening my leg.

Hit the gym 3 times a week

Alongside all the above I want to make sure I am in the gym doing 3 sessions a week on both weights and cardio. This just helps me with working towards all the above and should really help me get in shape all round not just for football. I have learnt recently the gym is actually not as bad as I once thought so it is about time I get the most out of my membership. 

Drop a clothing size

Finally one of my goals is to put all the above into practice and drop at least one clothing size going into the new season. A week before the new season begins I want to go on a trip to buy some new base layers that are a size below my usual and when the gear order goes in for the start of the season I want to be able to treat myself to some new club branded items in at least a size smaller than my current extra large that I am wearing. 

So there you have it those are my goals for the preseason if I did manage to hit all these I would definitely be going into the season in the best shape I have been in a long time which should definitely set me up for a good season ahead. Now I just need to zone in and stick to the plan, let's see how this goes...

See you soon

Lucy